Perigon Wealth Management LLC Purchases 1,887 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 911.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,094 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,887 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Welch & Forbes LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. United Community Bank raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 485 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $511,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 4,828 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,089,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock traded up $10.76 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $1,051.00. 268,805 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 249,604. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,058.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,040.35. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $888.75 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.08% and a return on equity of 51.28%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is currently 23.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value of $1,160,647.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total value of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This trade represents a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320 over the last three months. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.